One of the many challenging aspects of life after ostomy surgery is finding comfortable clothing to wear. For many of us, this is our first serious surgery and we are trying to adjust to life with an ostomy. Whether you weigh the same, lost weight, or gained weight, here are some tips that can get you living a stylish life.

Many of us will have had some weight fluctuations throughout our illness and recovery from surgery. In my case, I lost a significant amount of weight and none of my clothes fit when I came home. For this reason, I wore a lot of drawstring pants and sweats which were very comfy in the beginning but very unflattering. I wore bigger shirts as well in hopes to hide my ostomy.

What feels right to you after surgery is going to be different than someone else. Wearing sweats and t-shirts is fine but I am here to let you know that there is hope for stylish, concealing clothing right before your eyes.

If you are a woman who loves wearing jeans then I highly recommend Jag Jeans. They offer pull-on jeans that I discovered after my surgery and find amazing. I own a few pairs that I wear daily. They sell plus sizes, regular, and petite. Styles range from leggings to skinny to capris.

The prices are a little high starting at around $79.00 US dollars. For a cheaper version, I have read and heard that maternity jeans work in the same fashion. I have not yet tried any maternity jeans but have heard that they are stretchy and still hold a great shape with any body type. The stretch allows room for your pouch to fill while being undetected and also allow for any weight gain or loss.

As far as tops go, I recommend any type of stretchy shirt preferably with a pattern or ruching. The pattern can distract from the ostomy when it is lying flat and when it is full.

Don’t be afraid to wear tight shirts either! The key is try on everything to make sure it fits the way YOU want it to so you can feel confident again.

Other ostomy blogs can be found under Ostomy Life & Styles within the Know & Tell section of the blogs.